Hans Holbein (HAHNZ HOHL bine) the Younger was the son of a famous artist. His father was called Hans Holbein the Elder. Holbein was a german painter, draftsman, and designer who came from a family of artists. He trained in his father's studio in Augsburg before moving to Basel, Switzerland. In Basel, Holbein worked on house decorations, portraits, and woodcuts. He soon became a teacher in the painters' guild in Basel and was very active painting altarpieces and designing stained-glass windows.At the age of twenty-nine Holbein, went to England for two years. There he met the scholar and statesman Sir Thomas More. Holbein painted portraits of him and his family and quickly established

Hans Holbein the Elder.

(father)

an international reputation. Contemporaries marveled at his ability to capture the exact likeness of sitters and their elegant garments.

Holbein moved to England in 1532 and four years later became the court painter for Henry VIII. As the king's artist he was sent to foreign countries to paint portraits of women the king was interested in marrying. There were no cameras to record likenesses of people, so an artist was hired to do the job. Once when the pope forbade the king to divorce his first wife he just did it secretly and started his own church, the Anglican Church.

Holbein married the widow of a soldier in 1519 and they had four children. Her name was Elsbeth. Their son, Philip, grew up to be a gold and silversmith in the court of Emperor Maximilian.Hans and his wife lived apart for many years and she raised the children alone. She finally became so poor she had to sell the painting he had done of her and the children. Hans Holbein died of the plague in London in 1543.

Hans Holbein the Elder.

Our featured painting is a portrait of Edward VI Prince of Wales. He was the son of the king of England, King Henry VIII and his third wife, Jane Seymour. She died shortly after the birth of Edward, and King Henry married again. In fact, he had a total of six wives and the last one outlived him

Edward VI Prince of Wales

. Henry the VIII in full regalia.

The Ambassadors records the meeting between his bishop Georges de Selve and the French ambassador Jean de Dinteville. The strange distorted object in the foreground is a grinning skull with the image distorted.

The third picture Noli Me Tangere (which is a Latin phrase when translated means "Don't touch me") is about the meeting of Christ with Mary Magdalene after the resurrection in which He says to her, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father". John 20